If you count yourself as a fan of the shortened Kangoo that will become the be bod Z.E., Renault's first widely available electric vehicle, this post is for you. On the other side of the jump you'll find three videos that show the car in motion, the interior and undergoing the recharging process. That last video shows the three options that owners of the Renault EV will be able to choose from to recharge their batteries: a regular slow charge at home (takes 6 hours), fast charging (30 minutes) or battery swap (3 minutes). The swapping video is quite similar to what Better Place showed us in this video.


[Source: Renault via YouTube]

With Renault reportedly bringing three new electric vehicles to the Frankfort Motor Show this fall and the company's regular announcements of EV partnerships, word of two new deals - one with Arval and the other with ALD Automotive - isn't exactly a surprise. Still, this shows, once again, the strong commitment that Renault and alliance partner Nissan have in EVs ready for prime time.

The deals will help Renault get its vehicles into fleets and customer hands. ALD manages about 786,000 vehicles in 39 countries, many in Europe. Arval, a BNP Paribas subsidiary, leases vehicles (about 602,000 vehicles) and manages corporate fleets (made up of 688,000 vehicles) in 22 countries. Arval will help Renault figure out ways to lease EVs while ALD will offer its knowledge on how to price the electric vehicles. Read more about the Arval (PDF) and ALD Automotive (PDF) deals at the links.


[Source: Renault via Green Car Congress]

Need a delivery vehicle that, if nothing else, has a great name? Try the Kangoo Be Bop, which is even more fun to say than the Renault Kangoo Express Compact. The Be Bop, coming to European sales floors next spring, is based on the Kangoo Compact Concept from Frankfurt 2007 and can come branded with Renault's eco² label if you opt for the dCi 85 version. It's always a diesel that wins the eco badge, isn't it?

The Kangoo Be Bop will come with three options: two diesels - 1.5 dCi 85 and 105 - and a petrol, the 1.6 105. It's under four meters long and retains a lot of the quirkiness of the original concept car. The interior isn't huge, but the immense amount of light that can come in through the roof should make it feel roomy. That roof is convertible for the rear seat passengers or to carry a long load. While you're cruising around, the be bop will get you 44.4 mpg (U.S.) and 140 grams of CO₂ per km with the dCi 85 hp eco² version, while the 1.5 dCi will go 43.5 mpg (U.S) and the 1.6 16V petrol engine brings up the rear with 29.8 mpg. More details after the jump.


[Source: Renault]

So you run a small business in Europe and you don't want to spend a lot on transportation; plus, you want to save as much CO₂ from going to the atmosphere as you can. Until now, your small panel van options were the Citroën Nemo/Peugeot Beeper or the Fiat Fiorino. Well, add one more to the list: the Renault Kangoo Express Compact. This van replaces the Renault Superfive-based Express, which is derived from the old Renault 5/Le Car; some of these are still running around.

The Renault Kangoo Express Compact will be offered with three engines: One gasoline: 1.6i 8V 90 HP (188 g/km of CO₂) and two diesels: 1.5 dCi 70 HP (140 g/km of CO₂) and 1.5 dCi 85 HP (135 g/km of CO₂). We're likely to see an ECO² label version that gets under 119 g/km of CO₂ in the near future in order to benefit from the various tax reduction schemes in Europe. The van comes with all kinds of amenities, such as radio CD, A/C, ABS, EBD, electric steering, navigation system, Bluetooth, front and side airbags..


[Source: Renault]

These Frankfurt Motor Show vehicles no longer need an introduction. We've been covering them to the hilt and, if you missed what any of them are, you can see last night's wrap-up for more information. What this post is meant to do is provide you with some shiny, high-resolution images to see the concepts for yourself. Consider it our version of a free ticket to the show. We'll keep posting on more details from the IAA today; for now, enjoy the images. My favorite is the mule in the shot of the Volvo ReCharge.



[Source: Newspress]

Welcome to the the first edition of AutoblogGreen video round up! Video round up is a selection of several videos clips we think you might enjoy. The video above features the Opel Flextreme, GM's new E-Flex concept. The Opel video includes lots of views of the amazing doors, interior and even the Segway. Below the fold you will find Kangoo, the Renault compact concept, and Brabus' Smart Fourtwo concept.

[Source: YouTube]